Criminal – Sentencing – Upward variance

Criminal – Sentencing – Upward variance

Where a defendant whose guideline sentencing range was 27 to 33 months received an upwardly variant 60-month sentence instead, the lower court reasonably found that the defendant had engaged in “very serious” crimes and posed a recidivist threat, so the sentence should be affirmed.

Zoning – Variance – Fence – Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly

Where a plaintiff homeowner’s request for a dimensional variance to construct a fence around his property was denied by the Woonsocket Zoning Board of Review, the board’s decision should be upheld based on sufficient record evidence to support the board’s finding of a personal hardship, not a hardship emanating from the land.